The Legend... Long ago there lived a group of women known as the Daughters of the Earth, revered for their wisdom and knowledge, skilled in healing and white magic. But as time passed, they came to be known by a far more sinister term . . . witches.

Ariane Cheney, the Lady of Faire Isle is famed for her mystical skills and keeping her island secure from danger. A difficult task during a time of strife when Catherine de Medici is known and feared by other Daughters of the Earth as the Dark Queen. One night a wounded stranger arrives on Faire Isle and whispers to Ariane a secret that the Dark Queen would kill to possess.

The Daughters of the Earth saga that began with Susan Carroll’s The Dark Queen continues in the riveting sequel, The Courtesan.

Gabrielle Cheney has abandoned her sisters and the healing magic of Faire Isle for Paris. The beautiful young woman flirts with danger and intrigue in the glittering French court as she pursues power, dabbling in the black arts her family abhors. Gabrielle’s ruthless ambition conceals a heart wounded by a painful secret and haunted by the death of the brave warrior who once loved her.

Her first love became her most dreaded enemy...

The youngest of three Cheney sisters, Miri is renowned for her mystical abilities and calming aura. But her serenity has been shattered by the betrayal of the man she loved. As a girl, Miri was enchanted with young Simon Aristide. But time and events altered the handsome, gentle boy she knew, transforming him into France’s most notorious witch-hunter.

The year is 1585. As a mysterious comet blazes across the sky, one woman embarks on a dangerous mission that could determine the fate of two kingdoms.

Cast out from her clan, fiery Irish warrior, Catriona O'Hanlon has pledged her fealty to the Lady of Faire Isle. But Cat's courage and devotion will be put to the test when Ariane asks her to find the young girl known as the Silver Rose.

It is 1588, and as the Spanish Armada prepares to besiege England, Paris balances on the brink of revolution. To maintain her grip on the throne and on the dark magic that has become her obsession, Catherine de Medici turns to Louis Xavier, a ruthless corsair who was schooled in the dark arts and has mastered piracy along the Spanish main. But Louis’s basest instincts are held in check by the kindness of Lady Jane Danvers, a British exile whose innate sense of honor is but one facet of her complex and passionate nature.

Queen Catherine de Medici is dead, and for Meg Wolfe—successor in a line of legendary healers and mystics known as “daughters of the earth”—it is a time of new beginnings. She strives to be ordinary, invisible in the mists of Faire Isle, and is determined to put the terrifying days of a wicked mother and turbulent childhood behind her. But soon a summons from King James will rekindle a menacing power from the past, bringing haunting visions of a nightmare already unfolding—and a shattering mystery steeped in magic that will determine a destiny from which she cannot hide.